Rehabilitation and mental health go hand in hand

For Syrian refugees with disabilities in Lebanon, receiving mental health care in addition physical rehabilitation is vital to recovery. Since June 2017, Humanity & Inclusion has partnered with the Mousawat Rehabilitation Center in the Beqaa Valley to provide children with disabilities and their families with mental health care.

Children at the center have access to comprehensive rehabilitation services including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and psychosocial support. Every week, the mental health and rehabilitation staff meet to discuss their patients’ cases and how they can provide a holistic treatment plan.

The center also offers parents psychological support, including a parental support group. At the start of the project, parents were reluctant to speak with psychologists, for fear of being stigmatized by their community. Today, it has become common for them to request these services.

Currently, about 300 children and their families are treated free of charge thanks to Humanity & Inclusion. The organization focuses mainly on early intervention and follow-up care with the parents. Many families are beginning to return to Syria, so it is important, for example, that parents learn the rehabilitation exercises needed for their child’s treatment so they can continue them in Syria.